BOSTON -- One could almost hear Jim Mora in the Boston Celtics' locker room.

Playoffs? Don't talk about playoffs. Are you kidding me? I just hope we can win a game.

Okay, maybe Kevin Garnett wasn't so colorful in describing his disappointment. None of his comments will make the YouTube Hall of Fame alongside Mora, Dennis Green, the kid who enjoys doing hoodrat things with his friends and the leprechaun from Mobile, Alabama. But the Boston leader wasn't thrilled after losing to Brooklyn on Wednesday night.

"I think we're focusing in on too much of the playoffs, which are not here yet. I think we need to focus and lock in on these games that we have left, put the energy and effort behind that," said Garnett. "I think we're stressing too much about the future and the future's not here. We need to take this one game at a time, and then start to prepare for whatever's after this."

Oddly, the best way to prepare for the playoffs is to focus on finishing the regular season well. This isn't so much about winning or losing games, really. The playoff picture is looking more and more set, with Boston likely to meet the streaking New York Knicks in the first round. With that in mind, this journey's about building confidence, health and rhythm. Pierce and Garnett have already been announced as out against the Miami Heat on Friday. That leaves Boston three more chances with a full(-ish) roster, at most, before reaching the postseason.

"We've gotta be more consistent with that," Pierce said. "We don't talk on defense. We let constant dribble penetration from the guards without helping. I mean, it's obvious who the stars on their team are -- Deron Williams, Joe Johnson. We can't allow their stars to go out there and have huge nights. You know they're going to go to them every night; we have to do a better job communicating with each other, getting the ball out of their hands so they don't have nights like they had (Wednesday)."

Rivers said Wednesday that he honestly doesn't want to sit Pierce and Garnett, but knows they need rest as the regular season concludes. One would have to assume the coach is being truthful; after seeing how Boston has played while winning just four of its last 13 games, improvement is obviously essential. But so is coaxing Garnett and Pierce back to 100 percent, or as close to that number as possible.

In the past, of course, rain during Boston's regular seasons has tended to give way to sunshine once games become more meaningful. But that tradition won't necessarily continue. Avery Bradley's never played point guard in the playoffs. Jeff Green shot 32.9 percent during the six postseason games he started, back in 2010 with Oklahoma City. Terrence Williams, Jordan Crawford and Chris Wilcox have never appeared in a playoff game. Rajon Rondo won't be there to mask flaws and create plays. The Celtics will have to be more solid, more diligent, certainly more attentive than they were on Wednesday.

"(The Nets) came in with a better sense of urgency, like the playoffs are right around the corner, and we sort of eased into it. And we can't do that with a week and a half left," Pierce said. "They came out with more purpose than us, you saw from the beginning to the end, and we've got to understand, we've got to raise our intensity at this point of the season. We've got to start prepping our mind, our mindset, our game plan, and everything we try to do for the playoffs. And, you know, it was a step back."

The Celtics closed out to shooters Wednesday like they'd agreed to give the Nets a head start. On multiple occasions, Brooklyn players had enough time to read a Harry Potter book before letting jump shots fly. Heck, even Time Warner could have fixed a cable box during the amount of time Boston used before responding.

And the other end was just as bad, with the Celtics not earning a single free throw in the first half.

"I was really shocked when I saw that statistic at the half. It just shows you that we were a passive team, settling for jumpers instead of attacking them, getting in the paint," Pierce said. "They were the aggressors all night and we settled for jump shots, and that was evidenced by the free throws. We should never go a half when we take no free throws in a game. That just shows the lack of aggression, a lack of trying to get to the basket, trying to get contact. There's no excuse for it."

"It's amazing. When you look at the three games (with Brooklyn), it's so clear that the aggressor has won. And it's amazing just watching," Rivers added. "We lived in the paint the last time we played them; (Wednesday), we just took the first easy shot and a lot of them were contested. So I don't know if I'm going to judge (Wednesday), as by how much work we have to do."